VMware Inc. (VMW)and EMC Corp. (EMC) recently announced a collaboration to develop the new VMware vShield 5 family products, using RSA’s (security division of EMC) Data Loss Prevention (DLP) classification technology and policies.
The partnership enables VMware to embed Data Loss Prevention (DLP) classification technology and policies into the new VMware vShield App with Data Security, which will be available as a part of the VMware cloud infrastruture suite in the third quarter of 2011.
With rapid adoption of cloud computing, security and prevention of data loss has emerged as a major concern for enterprises in recent times. According to research firm IDC, enterprises cite data security and regulatory compliance as major impediments in adopting cloud computing services.
The partial outage of Amazon.com Inc.’s (AMZN) EC2 cloud service and the security breach of Sony Corp.’s (SNE) PlayStation Network and Qriocity music service exposed the drawbacks of cloud computing for both businesses and consumers. According to the latest survey by IDC, 31.0% of executives considered spending on security initiatives as the top priority for 2011.
The new vShield App with Data Security will be capable of accurately discovering and classifying sensitive data residing within virtual environments. With the help of DLP, the vShield App will dynamically lower the risk of data loss through the use of its 80 predefined policies at any given point of time.
After classifying the sensitive data, the vShield App will enforce appropriate controls to prevent any data loss. Enterprises then can manage the sensitive data by using vShield zoning. The vShield App is efficient in managing sensitive data not only at physical datacenters, but also at every virtualization layer.
We believe the new product will help customers’ accelarate their transition to the cloud. As VMware remains the premier company in the virtualization and cloud computing space, we believe it will gain siginficantly from the new vShield App.
We also believe that the increasing adoption of DLP technology will boost RSA’s revenue growth going forward. Besides VMware, networking giants Cisco Inc. (CSCO) and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) already use DLP technology in their products.
Our Take
VMware has been working on server virtualization and controls nearly 80% of the market globally. Enterprises that are shifting to the cloud need proper infrastructure, which VMware provides through its four key products: vSphere that helps in coordinating and automating computer storage and networking; vShields for virtualized Edge functions and security; vCloud Director to enable cloud functionality; and the recently launched vCenter Operations Suite for management.
We believe VMware is the biggest beneficiary in the adoption of cloud computing and the corresponding shift in IT spending. The server virtualization market possesses huge potential and VMware continues to expand its presence in the datacenter cloud management and security segments.
Being the parent company of VMware, we believe EMC will also benefit from this trend over the long term. Moreover, EMC remains focused on developing its security business going forward. EMC recently announced its intention of spending $3.0 billion on acquisitions, with security being the other priority besides storage. We believe this policy will boost EMC’s dominant position (70.0%) in the cyber security market over the long term.
We have a Neutral recommendation on both VMware and EMC over the long term (for the next 6 to 12 months). Currently, VMware has a Zacks #3 Rank, which implies a Hold rating on a short-term basis. EMC has a Zacks #2 Rank, which implies a Buy rating on a short-term basis.
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